Top Tips for Spring Lawn Care

Compacted soil is a common problem for lawns, especially in areas with frequent foot traffic, play equipment or regularly used pathways.  Compaction restricts the movement of air, water and nutrients into the soil, making it harder for grass roots to grow. Over time, lawns can become thin and patchy, creating opportunities for weeds to invade.

Cores should be made every 5 cm and up to 10 cm deep. 

After aerating, apply Yates Gypsum Claybreaker Soil Improver Granules, to help improve soil structure and break up heavy clay soil.

Pro Tip: For fast recovery follow the coring with a quality lawn fertiliser and water in well. We recommend our Golf Course Green Lawn Fertiliser or Professional Buffalo Booster Lawn Fertiliser.

Scarifying

Following aeration, it is good to top dress the lawn to level out any low areas and then fertilise to encourage new blades of grass to grow through the topdressing. Be sure to use a fine material for topdressing to ensure it filters through as the leaf blades grow.

It's ideal to control many broadleaf weeds, like bindii, clover and dandelions, during winter, before they have a chance to flower, set seed and spread. However, there are many additional broadleaf weeds that flourish in spring, such as thistles, plantain and capeweed, and it's important to get them under control to keep your lawn looking great.

There are easy options for controlling the most common broadleaf weeds in lawns, including hose-on Yates Weed'n'Feed and Click & Grow Yates Weed'n'Feed. These both have the added benefit of providing nutrients to green the lawn. 

For buffalo lawns, use Yates Weed'n'Feed Buffalo Lawn or Yates Lawn Weed Killer Bindii & Clover Buffalo Lawn, which have been specially designed to be safe for buffalo lawns. 

During winter the lawn has lay reasonably dormant but in spring the soil temperatures are perfect for root establishment and fresh lawn growth. Grass needs nutrients during late winter and spring to help break it out of dormancy, begin the growing season and promote green healthy growth. Yates Dynamic Lifter Lawn Food is ideal to feed and green all lawn types as well as promote healthy soil. Spread the granules evenly over the lawn or use the Yates Dynamic Lifter Lawn Food pouch with the Click & Grow trigger. 

Curl Grubs are common lawn pests that often arrive during mid-spring and summer. They damage the lawn by eating the roots just below the soil surface. This creates brown patches and eventually grass can start rolling back like a carpet. Monitor your lawn for curl grubs and take note if large birds such as magpies are pecking at the ground. Yates Grub Kill & Protect for Lawns can give up to six months protection against Curl Grubs, as well as control other common lawn pests such as Argentinian Scarab larvae and Lawn Armyworm. Curl Grubs are the larvae of African Black Beetles, however, if you notice the adult beetles, you will need to use Yates Advanced Lawn Insect Killer to control them.

For the first mow of the spring, make sure your mower has sharp blades, to give your turf an even, crisp cut. If your lawn has grown long over the winter, don't cut it extra short just because it's spring; this can damage the grass and make it turn brown and patchy. Wait until the soil has warmed up and grass is noticeably growing before you cut it. For the first cut, don't cut more than a third off its length. For cool season grasses such as Bent and Fine Fescue, aim for around 2-3 cm, and for warm season grasses such as Couch, Kikuyu and Buffalo, cut to around 4 cm.

The best way to mow is little and often, rather than infrequent severe cuts. 

Particularly if it's been a dry winter, it's important to give your lawn 2 - 3 thorough waterings each week to enable moisture to move down deep into the soil. This will help keep the lawn looking great in spring and also promote deep growth that will assist the lawn to cope with the heat of summer.

To ensure water penetrates into the soil effectively, use a soil wetting agent such as Yates Waterwise Soil Wetter. This will help break down the waxy, water-repellent soil layer and make the most of any rainfall or watering.  

Pro tip: if you've noticed water sitting on the soil surface and not penetrating down into the soil, the soil is likely to be hydrophobic (water repellent) and will benefit from an application of a soil wetter.